3,219 research outputs found
Zwischen Zustimmungsfähigkeit und und tatsächlicher Zustimmung: Kriterien für Reformpolitik aus ordnungsökonomischer und politikwissenschaftlicher Perspektive
Dass Ordnungsökonomik und empirische Politikwissenschaft gleichermaßen den Blick auf den einzelnen Bürger richten, eröffnet Chancen zur Diskussion und besseren Verknüpfung beider Sichtweisen. Nachfolgend werden die Kriterien für eine Reformpolitik zunächst getrennt aus ordnungsökonomischer und politikwissenschaftlicher Perspektive diskutiert, um vor diesem Hintergrund abschließend die Frage nach Übereinstimmungen, Schnittstellen sowie Divergenzen beider Herangehensweisen genauer beleuchten zu können. --
Simulation of moving particles in 3D with the Lattice Boltzmann method
AbstractThe following paper presents a way to simulate the behavior of particle agglomerates in a fluid flow by coupling the Lattice Boltzmann Method to a rigid body physics engine. By extending the basic algorithm by a fluid/particle force interaction method, the hydrodynamic forces acting on the particles can be calculated. By the use of this force interaction between the fluid and the particles and by the use of the rigid body physics engine, the movement and collision behavior of particles in a flow can be simulated. Additionally, this coupled simulation system is able to simulate the internal particle forces in the connections between sintered particles, which could break due to the forces and torques of a shear flow. This permits a prediction of possible break-ups or structural displacements
Measuring cellular traction forces on non-planar substrates
Animal cells use traction forces to sense the mechanics and geometry of their
environment. Measuring these traction forces requires a workflow combining cell
experiments, image processing and force reconstruction based on elasticity
theory. Such procedures have been established before mainly for planar
substrates, in which case one can use the Green's function formalism. Here we
introduce a worksflow to measure traction forces of cardiac myofibroblasts on
non-planar elastic substrates. Soft elastic substrates with a wave-like
topology were micromolded from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and fluorescent
marker beads were distributed homogeneously in the substrate. Using feature
vector based tracking of these marker beads, we first constructed a hexahedral
mesh for the substrate. We then solved the direct elastic boundary volume
problem on this mesh using the finite element method (FEM). Using data
simulations, we show that the traction forces can be reconstructed from the
substrate deformations by solving the corresponding inverse problem with a
L1-norm for the residue and a L2-norm for 0th order Tikhonov regularization.
Applying this procedure to the experimental data, we find that cardiac
myofibroblast cells tend to align both their shapes and their forces with the
long axis of the deformable wavy substrate.Comment: 34 pages, 9 figure
Sesquiterpene Cyclases from the Basidiomycete Cerrena unicolor
Hundreds of terpenoids have been isolated from Basidiomycota, among them are volatile mono- and sesquiterpenes with amazing sensory qualities, representing a promising alternative to essential oils from endangered plant species. Sesquiterpene synthases (STS) appear to be an abundant class of enzymes in these fungi. The basidiomycete Cerrena unicolor, a known sesquiterpene producer, was in silico screened for sesquiterpene cyclases via homology Basic Local Alignment Search Tool searches. Cyclase genes identified were cloned and heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli Bl21 using pCOLD I as the expression vector. Ten cyclases were successfully produced and purified, and their identity was confirmed using amino acid sequencing of tryptic peptides by nano-liquid chromatography-high resolution-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis was applied to characterize these cyclases according to the formation of sesquiterpene hydrocarbons and oxidized terpenoids. Bioinformatic characterization and phylogenetic determination allowed for the classification of these diverse fungal enzymes. A representative single and a multi-product STS, respectively, were further analyzed for their dependency from divalent metal cations as a cofactor for the catalytic activity
Impact of Agro-Industrial Side-Streams on Sesquiterpene Production by Submerged Cultured Cerrena unicolor
The quality and harvest of essential oils depend on a large number of factors, most of which are hard to control in an open-field environment. Therefore, Basidiomycota have gained attention as a source for biotechnologically produced terpenoids. The basidiomycete Cerrena unicolor (Cun) was cultivated in submerged culture, and the production of sesquiterpenoids was analyzed via stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE), followed by thermo-desorption gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (TDS-GC-MS). Identification of aroma-active sesquiterpenoids was supported by GC, coupled with an olfactory detection port (ODP). Following the ideal of a circular bioeconomy, Cun was submerged (up-scalable) cultivated, and supplemented with a variety of food industrial side-streams. The effects of the different supplementations and of pure fatty acids were evaluated by liquid extraction and analysis of the terpenoids via GC-MS. As sesquiterpenoid production was enhanced by the most by lipid-rich side-streams, a cultivation with 13C-labeled acetate was conducted. Data confirmed that lipid-rich side-streams enhanced the sesquiterpene production through an increased acetyl-CoA pool
Peripheral blood levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 predict lesion volume in acute stroke
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) have been implicated to play an important role in the destruction of the extracellular matrix in diseases of the central nervous system. This study investigated whether the expression of one of these proteases, MMP-9 in blood, is related to the size of human brain infarcts assessed with magnetic resonance imaging. Consecutively, twenty-one acute stroke patients were included prospectively into our study. In blood samples drawn within 24h after onset, MMP-9 RNA-expression and proteolytic-activity were analyzed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and gelatin zymography, respectively. The ischemic lesion volumes in time to peak perfusion maps and diffusion weighted imaging were measured morphometrically. RNA-expression levels of MMP-9 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) correlated with the brain infarct lesion (TTP-delay 4s, r=−0.61, p=0.007; TTP-delay 6s: r=−0.58, p=0.012; DWI r=−0.47; p=0.047). Our preliminary results demonstrate that MMP-9 RNA is upregulated in PBMCs in proportion to ischemia. These findings suggest that MMP-9 might contribute to the manifestation of ischemic brain damage. Since MMP-9 is upregulated in acute ischemia inhibition of MMP-9 may represent a complementary treatment target in acute stroke therap
“and sent for expert men from Rammelsberg...”: the siege tunnel of Henry the Lion at Desenberg from 1168
In this paper, we show first results of seismic and EMI data comprising evidence of a siege tunnel mentioned in medieval written sources. The tunnel would be the oldest archaeological evidence of a man-made tunnel in Westphalia (Germany)
A Scalable and Modular Software Architecture for Finite Elements on Hierarchical Hybrid Grids
In this article, a new generic higher-order finite-element framework for
massively parallel simulations is presented. The modular software architecture
is carefully designed to exploit the resources of modern and future
supercomputers. Combining an unstructured topology with structured grid
refinement facilitates high geometric adaptability and matrix-free multigrid
implementations with excellent performance. Different abstraction levels and
fully distributed data structures additionally ensure high flexibility,
extensibility, and scalability. The software concepts support sophisticated
load balancing and flexibly combining finite element spaces. Example scenarios
with coupled systems of PDEs show the applicability of the concepts to
performing geophysical simulations.Comment: Preprint of an article submitted to International Journal of
Parallel, Emergent and Distributed Systems (Taylor & Francis
- …